"A Farewell To Kings" Question (for those of you who were around when it came out)

[Lorraine]

It was quite a big deal in England. My big brother & his friends were all over it at the time of its release. I was too young though.

 

I also remember it getting a good deal of coverage in the music press too (Sounds etc). My brother's circle all read that stuff & talked about it all the time.

 

So yes, as I recall it made quite an impression over here.

 

Well what the hell is wrong with us Americans? I'll blame it on WNEW FM and Scott Muni and Allison Steele for not alerting me to this album.

Stern used to talk about them all the time. He was not a fan....

He was just jealous of Geddy's nose. That's why he didn't like them.

 

And his hair.. And his glasses.. And his personality..

Yeah. Especially the fact that Geddy was, and is, actually - nice.

And so to is Stern by all accounts....

He can be. He loves the Moodies, and I've watched him with Justin Hayward. I think Justin is one of his idols.

[Lorraine]

But enough of Howie.

 

Back to the topic.

 

A Farewell To Kings - Great title for their last concert tour.

[laughedatbytime]

But enough of Howie.

 

Back to the topic.

 

A Farewell To Kings - Great title for their last concert tour.

With the last show on the 50th anniversary of the original release.

[apetersvt]

I will point out that it is about time we had a thread talking about the awesomeness of Kings. I guess I was too lazy to start it. My 3rd favorite album behind COS and Hemispheres.

 

[Lorraine]

But enough of Howie.

 

Back to the topic.

 

A Farewell To Kings - Great title for their last concert tour.

With the last show on the 50th anniversary of the original release.

You wouldn't want that. It would be too painful to watch.

[laughedatbytime]

But enough of Howie.

 

Back to the topic.

 

A Farewell To Kings - Great title for their last concert tour.

With the last show on the 50th anniversary of the original release.

You wouldn't want that. It would be too painful to watch.

Who would have thought they would be capable of what they're doing at 60?

[Lorraine]

But enough of Howie.

 

Back to the topic.

 

A Farewell To Kings - Great title for their last concert tour.

With the last show on the 50th anniversary of the original release.

You wouldn't want that. It would be too painful to watch.

Who would have thought they would be capable of what they're doing at 60?

They've lost a bit of steam since their younger years.

 

Some things all the healthy living, eating and exercising just can't stop.

[EagleMoon]

I was in my last year of high school when this album came out. I've told this story before but I was in a band and the drummer had the stereo hooked up to our PA and put on Xanadu. I was blown away. Still my favorite Rush song by a long shot. I went out and bought the album right away. I remember when I saw them in concert in '81 and they both came out on stage with the doublenecks I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I sent and got that album cover signed during this last tour. I thought of anything I could get signed, that would mean the most since it was the album that introduced me to the band.

[Lorraine]

I was in my last year of high school when this album came out. I've told this story before but I was in a band and the drummer had the stereo hooked up to our PA and put on Xanadu. I was blown away. Still my favorite Rush song by a long shot. I went out and bought the album right away. I remember when I saw them in concert in '81 and they both came out on stage with the doublenecks I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I sent and got that album cover signed during this last tour. I thought of anything I could get signed, that would mean the most since it was the album that introduced me to the band.

 

I feel like a little kid asking this, but you actually saw them do the whole song in concert? You said you thought you had died and gone to heaven. I said the same thing to myself this morning as I watched, again, Rush doing Xanadu in ESL - I said to myself that if I could only see them do it in concert as they did on ESL, I'd think for sure I'd died and gone to heaven.

 

You are a most fortunate woman.

[EagleMoon]

I was in my last year of high school when this album came out. I've told this story before but I was in a band and the drummer had the stereo hooked up to our PA and put on Xanadu. I was blown away. Still my favorite Rush song by a long shot. I went out and bought the album right away. I remember when I saw them in concert in '81 and they both came out on stage with the doublenecks I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I sent and got that album cover signed during this last tour. I thought of anything I could get signed, that would mean the most since it was the album that introduced me to the band.

 

I feel like a little kid asking this, but you actually saw them do the whole song in concert? You said you thought you had died and gone to heaven. I said the same thing to myself this morning as I watched, again, Rush doing Xanadu in ESL - I said to myself that if I could only see them do it in concert as they did on ESL, I'd think for sure I'd died and gone to heaven.

 

You are a most fortunate woman.

 

Oh yeah I saw them do the whole song. It was AWESOME. :) And funny I remember thinking "oh no! Alex has cut his hair!" Yes I was shallow back then.

[Lorraine]

I was in my last year of high school when this album came out. I've told this story before but I was in a band and the drummer had the stereo hooked up to our PA and put on Xanadu. I was blown away. Still my favorite Rush song by a long shot. I went out and bought the album right away. I remember when I saw them in concert in '81 and they both came out on stage with the doublenecks I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I sent and got that album cover signed during this last tour. I thought of anything I could get signed, that would mean the most since it was the album that introduced me to the band.

 

I feel like a little kid asking this, but you actually saw them do the whole song in concert? You said you thought you had died and gone to heaven. I said the same thing to myself this morning as I watched, again, Rush doing Xanadu in ESL - I said to myself that if I could only see them do it in concert as they did on ESL, I'd think for sure I'd died and gone to heaven.

 

You are a most fortunate woman.

 

Oh yeah I saw them do the whole song. It was AWESOME. :) And funny I remember thinking "oh no! Alex has cut his hair!" Yes I was shallow back then.

Let me ask you a question, Eagle. Is it my imagination, or could Alex move his fingers quicker on his guitar back then than today?

[EagleMoon]

I was in my last year of high school when this album came out. I've told this story before but I was in a band and the drummer had the stereo hooked up to our PA and put on Xanadu. I was blown away. Still my favorite Rush song by a long shot. I went out and bought the album right away. I remember when I saw them in concert in '81 and they both came out on stage with the doublenecks I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I sent and got that album cover signed during this last tour. I thought of anything I could get signed, that would mean the most since it was the album that introduced me to the band.

 

I feel like a little kid asking this, but you actually saw them do the whole song in concert? You said you thought you had died and gone to heaven. I said the same thing to myself this morning as I watched, again, Rush doing Xanadu in ESL - I said to myself that if I could only see them do it in concert as they did on ESL, I'd think for sure I'd died and gone to heaven.

 

You are a most fortunate woman.

 

Oh yeah I saw them do the whole song. It was AWESOME. :) And funny I remember thinking "oh no! Alex has cut his hair!" Yes I was shallow back then.

Let me ask you a question, Eagle. Is it my imagination, or could Alex move his fingers quicker on his guitar back then than today?

 

Yeah I think so. Part of that I'm sure is his gaining weight. Makes your fingers thicker. I remember some interview where he mentioned that. But probably some of that is just age. Everything slows down.

[Slack jaw gaze]

Like Narpski, AFTK was the "new" Rush album when I first got into the band and like Narpski, outside my circle of friends I had no idea if anyone else even knew who Rush was. Rush certainly wasn't getting much in the way of airplay back then. In those days FM radio was in love with bands like Nazareth, ZZ Top, Queen, Kansas, Pink Floyd, Foreigner, STYX, Ted Nugent, AC/DC, Kiss (but pretty much only Beth or Rock and Roll All Night) -- all great bands, mind you, but none that sounded anything like Rush in their heyday. You might hear Rush at late night, but it was almost always In The Mood back then.

 

That's a shame. Like I said, I distinctly remember hearing Closer To The Heart a lot on the radio back then, but that was it. The next time I remember hearing Rush was Tom Sawyer.

 

If I remember correctly, Alex said they recorded this album in five days?

As coincidence would have it, I just read the AFTK chapter in the book Contents Under Pressure 5 minutes before reading this thread. So a little trivia paraphrased from the book:

 

It was the first album where they had dedicated writing time, and it was (mostly) written and recorded in Wales over a few weeks. The previous albums were written on the road and recorded quickly.

 

The acoustic intro to the song AFTK was recorded outdoors, and the birds you hear were just part of the background (not layered in).

 

The song Closer To The Heart is an answer to the song AFTK. The last few lines of AFTK...

Can't we raise our eyes

And make a start

Can't we find the minds

To lead us closer to the Heart

[x1yyz]

I was in my last year of high school when this album came out. I've told this story before but I was in a band and the drummer had the stereo hooked up to our PA and put on Xanadu. I was blown away. Still my favorite Rush song by a long shot. I went out and bought the album right away. I remember when I saw them in concert in '81 and they both came out on stage with the doublenecks I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I sent and got that album cover signed during this last tour. I thought of anything I could get signed, that would mean the most since it was the album that introduced me to the band.

 

I feel like a little kid asking this, but you actually saw them do the whole song in concert? You said you thought you had died and gone to heaven. I said the same thing to myself this morning as I watched, again, Rush doing Xanadu in ESL - I said to myself that if I could only see them do it in concert as they did on ESL, I'd think for sure I'd died and gone to heaven.

 

You are a most fortunate woman.

 

Oh yeah I saw them do the whole song. It was AWESOME. :) And funny I remember thinking "oh no! Alex has cut his hair!" Yes I was shallow back then.

Let me ask you a question, Eagle. Is it my imagination, or could Alex move his fingers quicker on his guitar back then than today?

 

Yeah I think so. Part of that I'm sure is his gaining weight. Makes your fingers thicker. I remember some interview where he mentioned that. But probably some of that is just age. Everything slows down.

 

I just read an interview with him recently where he mentioned having psoriasis and that affects his hands :(

[EagleMoon]

I was in my last year of high school when this album came out. I've told this story before but I was in a band and the drummer had the stereo hooked up to our PA and put on Xanadu. I was blown away. Still my favorite Rush song by a long shot. I went out and bought the album right away. I remember when I saw them in concert in '81 and they both came out on stage with the doublenecks I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I sent and got that album cover signed during this last tour. I thought of anything I could get signed, that would mean the most since it was the album that introduced me to the band.

 

I feel like a little kid asking this, but you actually saw them do the whole song in concert? You said you thought you had died and gone to heaven. I said the same thing to myself this morning as I watched, again, Rush doing Xanadu in ESL - I said to myself that if I could only see them do it in concert as they did on ESL, I'd think for sure I'd died and gone to heaven.

 

You are a most fortunate woman.

 

Oh yeah I saw them do the whole song. It was AWESOME. :) And funny I remember thinking "oh no! Alex has cut his hair!" Yes I was shallow back then.

Let me ask you a question, Eagle. Is it my imagination, or could Alex move his fingers quicker on his guitar back then than today?

 

Yeah I think so. Part of that I'm sure is his gaining weight. Makes your fingers thicker. I remember some interview where he mentioned that. But probably some of that is just age. Everything slows down.

 

I just read an interview with him recently where he mentioned having psoriasis and that affects his hands :(

 

Aw, poor Alex. Sorry to hear that.

[By Tor]

It was my first Rush album and still is my Favourite

 

A music program called The Old Grey Whistle Test showed a clip of Rush and annouced they were touring the U.K.

 

I went and bought the new 12 inch single Closer To The Heart and a ticket and after my first ever gig I went and bought

A Farewell To Kings .

It blew me away and opened me up to Prog Rock and it was though Rush had wrote these songs just for me

Men who lived forever , Sci Fi story of a man looking for his sister and ending up going in a black hole !

The lyrics, the musicianship and everything about this album set me off on an neverending trip on the Rush light fantastic.

 

I had to buy their next album , I had to find out what happened to the fella who had ending up in a black hole of Cygnus XI. :o

Edited April 20, 2014 by By Tor

[MMCXII]

It was my first Rush album and still is my Favourite

 

A music program called The Old Grey Whistle Test showed a clip of Rush and annouced they were touring the U.K.

 

I went and bought the new 12 inch single Closer To The Heart and a ticket and after my first ever gig I went and bought

A Farewell To Kings .

It blew me away and opened me up to Prog Rock and it was though Rush had wrote these songs just for me

Men who lived forever , Sci Fi story of a man looking for his sister and ending up going in a black hole !

The lyrics, the musicianship and everything about this album set me off on an neverending trip on the Rush light fantastic.

 

I had to buy their next album , I had to find out what happened to the fella who had ending up in a black hole of Cygnus XI. :o

 

Rush was on Old Grey Whistle test? Is this clip available somewhere??

 

You thought he was looking for his sister? Ha that's awesome! It was the stars' sister ..

[goose]

With all this love for AFTK, I thought I'd share a work in progress with ya'll. I'm part of an online music collaboration project with a couple of other guys. We're working on a 2 album release of mostly originals, but we're all huge Rush freaks so we thought we'd work up a couple of Rush tunes, staying mostly true to the original versions, but putting our own twists on them here and there. It just so happens that A Farewell to Kings is one of the ones we're working on. Here is what we have so far. I hope you enjoy it!

I'd love to be able to listen, but I can't. I couldn't even get your link to load.

 

Here's another link to a different site. Hopefully that works!

The guitar solos sound very nice! Some great tone!

 

I like the arrangement!

[goose]

It was my first Rush album and still is my Favourite

 

A music program called The Old Grey Whistle Test showed a clip of Rush and annouced they were touring the U.K.

 

I went and bought the new 12 inch single Closer To The Heart and a ticket and after my first ever gig I went and bought

A Farewell To Kings .

It blew me away and opened me up to Prog Rock and it was though Rush had wrote these songs just for me

Men who lived forever , Sci Fi story of a man looking for his sister and ending up going in a black hole !

The lyrics, the musicianship and everything about this album set me off on an neverending trip on the Rush light fantastic.

 

I had to buy their next album , I had to find out what happened to the fella who had ending up in a black hole of Cygnus XI. :o

 

Rush was on Old Grey Whistle test? Is this clip available somewhere??

 

Can't find it yet. In the meantime...here's some Queen...

 

[goose]

It was my first Rush album and still is my Favourite

 

A music program called The Old Grey Whistle Test showed a clip of Rush and annouced they were touring the U.K.

 

I went and bought the new 12 inch single Closer To The Heart and a ticket and after my first ever gig I went and bought

A Farewell To Kings .

It blew me away and opened me up to Prog Rock and it was though Rush had wrote these songs just for me

Men who lived forever , Sci Fi story of a man looking for his sister and ending up going in a black hole !

The lyrics, the musicianship and everything about this album set me off on an neverending trip on the Rush light fantastic.

 

I had to buy their next album , I had to find out what happened to the fella who had ending up in a black hole of Cygnus XI. :o

 

Rush was on Old Grey Whistle test? Is this clip available somewhere??

.

Here's some info on the rare clip...

 

http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2012/01/04/2954/Rare-Rush-1977-performance-of-Xanadu-to-be-shown-at-Old-Grey-Whistle-Test-40th-anniversary-show

 

The influential BBC television show The Old Grey Whistle Test - which ran from 1971 to 1987 - celebrated its 40th anniversary last year and will commemorate the occasion with a special show at the Sage Hall in Gateshead, UK on January 15th that will unveil rare footage from BBC Worldwide archive recording. One of the recordings is of special interest to Rush fans. From the MusicPro website:

... The highlight of the show and the clip which is causing the most interest for UK progressive rock fans is an extremely rare recording of Canadian progressive rockers, RUSH, performing Xanadu in it's entirety during a performance that Phipps regards as one of the main peaks of the Old Grey Whistle Test shows. Phipps says of RUSH at the time, "I knew about them but I'd never seen them and that set literally blew me away." ...

This footage originally aired on the show back in 1977. The Old Grey Whistle Test 40th Anniversary show starts at 8pm on Sunday, January 15th in The Sage, Hall Two and tickets are available online at this link. Thanks to RushFanForever for the heads up.

[JARG]

With all this love for AFTK, I thought I'd share a work in progress with ya'll. I'm part of an online music collaboration project with a couple of other guys. We're working on a 2 album release of mostly originals, but we're all huge Rush freaks so we thought we'd work up a couple of Rush tunes, staying mostly true to the original versions, but putting our own twists on them here and there. It just so happens that A Farewell to Kings is one of the ones we're working on. Here is what we have so far. I hope you enjoy it!

I'd love to be able to listen, but I can't. I couldn't even get your link to load.

 

Here's another link to a different site. Hopefully that works!

The guitar solos sound very nice! Some great tone!

 

I like the arrangement!

 

Thanks!

[Tony R]

When I listened to it today on my walk I realized some of the reasons I loved it so much then and still do to this day. The bass tone/sound and clarity is so appealing and pleasant to the ear. Ged's voice is right in the zone. Perfect sound and pitch. His wail is at its incredible best. Gives me goosebumps still. I may be in the minority but the title track and Cinderella Man were always my favorites and still are....

 

I hear ya. AFtK is my second fave Rush album, a very close second to Permanent Waves (which was the first album of theirs I heard). And the title track is spectacular. The lyrics are especially meaningful in today's world:

 

"When they turn the pages of history

When these days have passed long ago

Will they read of us with sadness

For the seeds that we let grow?"

 

"Cities full of hatred, fear and lies

Withered hearts and cruel, tormented eyes

Scheming demons dressed in kingly guise

Beating down the multitude and

Scoffing at the wise"

 

I envy you people who heard AFtK when it came out—you've had more time with it than I have :)

Thanks for the timely lyrics.

 

Rush was ahead of their time in more ways than one.

 

But that's the way "life" has always been. We just tend to believe that today is always worse than "back then".

 

 

[Tony R]

It was my first Rush album and still is my Favourite

 

A music program called The Old Grey Whistle Test showed a clip of Rush and annouced they were touring the U.K.

 

I went and bought the new 12 inch single Closer To The Heart and a ticket and after my first ever gig I went and bought

A Farewell To Kings .

It blew me away and opened me up to Prog Rock and it was though Rush had wrote these songs just for me

Men who lived forever , Sci Fi story of a man looking for his sister and ending up going in a black hole !

The lyrics, the musicianship and everything about this album set me off on an neverending trip on the Rush light fantastic.

 

I had to buy their next album , I had to find out what happened to the fella who had ending up in a black hole of Cygnus XI. :o

 

Rush was on Old Grey Whistle test? Is this clip available somewhere??

.

Here's some info on the rare clip...

 

http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2012/01/04/2954/Rare-Rush-1977-performance-of-Xanadu-to-be-shown-at-Old-Grey-Whistle-Test-40th-anniversary-show

 

The influential BBC television show The Old Grey Whistle Test - which ran from 1971 to 1987 - celebrated its 40th anniversary last year and will commemorate the occasion with a special show at the Sage Hall in Gateshead, UK on January 15th that will unveil rare footage from BBC Worldwide archive recording. One of the recordings is of special interest to Rush fans. From the MusicPro website:

... The highlight of the show and the clip which is causing the most interest for UK progressive rock fans is an extremely rare recording of Canadian progressive rockers, RUSH, performing Xanadu in it's entirety during a performance that Phipps regards as one of the main peaks of the Old Grey Whistle Test shows. Phipps says of RUSH at the time, "I knew about them but I'd never seen them and that set literally blew me away." ...

This footage originally aired on the show back in 1977. The Old Grey Whistle Test 40th Anniversary show starts at 8pm on Sunday, January 15th in The Sage, Hall Two and tickets are available online at this link. Thanks to RushFanForever for the heads up.

 

The Old Grey Whistle test only played the first 6 minutes or so and then the program ran the credits and finished. The following week the show's host Bob Harris said they had had an unprecedented reaction not only to the song but that it wasn't played in its entirety. For the first time ever on the show they played a track again, though if I recall they played the last six minutes or so not the whole piece. I may be wrong in that as I was wildly punching the air at the time.

 

[Tony R]

It was quite a big deal in England. My big brother & his friends were all over it at the time of its release. I was too young though.

 

I also remember it getting a good deal of coverage in the music press too (Sounds etc). My brother's circle all read that stuff & talked about it all the time.

 

So yes, as I recall it made quite an impression over here.

Turbine is correct. Sounds' top writer Geoff Barton gave it a 5 star double page review though typically the NME was scathing. I remember that it got to 22 on the UK album chart and that was no mean feat at the time.

 

[x1yyz]

When I listened to it today on my walk I realized some of the reasons I loved it so much then and still do to this day. The bass tone/sound and clarity is so appealing and pleasant to the ear. Ged's voice is right in the zone. Perfect sound and pitch. His wail is at its incredible best. Gives me goosebumps still. I may be in the minority but the title track and Cinderella Man were always my favorites and still are....

 

I hear ya. AFtK is my second fave Rush album, a very close second to Permanent Waves (which was the first album of theirs I heard). And the title track is spectacular. The lyrics are especially meaningful in today's world:

 

"When they turn the pages of history

When these days have passed long ago

Will they read of us with sadness

For the seeds that we let grow?"

 

"Cities full of hatred, fear and lies

Withered hearts and cruel, tormented eyes

Scheming demons dressed in kingly guise

Beating down the multitude and

Scoffing at the wise"

 

I envy you people who heard AFtK when it came out—you've had more time with it than I have :)

Thanks for the timely lyrics.

 

Rush was ahead of their time in more ways than one.

 

But that's the way "life" has always been. We just tend to believe that today is always worse than "back then".

 

 

Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose?